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Hyrkanian
Overview There are two types of Hyrkanian. The primary cultural type is dark, tall and slender but a squat, slant-eyed type is becoming more common due to an admixture with stunted but intelligent aborigines in the mountains east of the Vilayet which the Hyrkanians encountered as they migrated west from the coast. Hyrkanians are nomadic horsemen, cruel and ruthless, whose violent rampages across the steppe are still spoken of in frightened voices as if the brutal conquests happened but yesterday and not years or decades or centuries before. The area called Hyrkania by Robert E. Howard lies to the east of the Vilayet and ranges from tundra, taiga forest, steppe, prairie and even desert. Hyrkania extends from the Vilayet to the Eastern Ocean. The Hyrkanians conquer all that they see, swarming over the terrain in overwhelming numbers on fleet orses. (Note: There is a lot of info, so I'll put the info I find most important). Their Horses Hyrkanians are born to the saddle, learning to ride before they learn to walk. Hyrkanians almost always travel with three or four horses per warrior and they never stop to change horses; switching mounts is done on the run with the Hyrkanian simply gathering up his gear, including his saddle, and vaulting onto another steed. Their stirrups are designed for adroit manoeuvres, being disk shaped to provide a solid platform. Horses are a measure of power and wealth among the Hyrkanians and all of them have names. Horse races, hunting and archery contests are popular pastimes. Hyrkanians rarely walk more than twenty paces unless the need is great. A Hyrkanian who needs to be somewhere rides his horse. Foreigners Hyrkanians are notably haughty in their dealings with foreigners, no matter what their status might be; for example, they will not show deference to a foreign noble. A Hyrkanian who would not think about lying to his lord has no problem lying to a foreigner. Although they rarely commit murder among themselves, killing a foreigner is of no consequence to Hyrkanians. Hyrkanians will gladly feed fellow nomads and share all they have but they are fiercely greedy and violently stingy toward foreigners, unwilling to share a thing. Women Hyrkanian women, although few ever achieve fame, have a powerful role in Hyrkanian politics and economy. Each member of a nomad tribe must contribute to the whole, so the Hyrkanians do not subjugate their women, believing this would damage the whole. Culturally speaking, the Hyrkanians respect women and view them as fonts of wisdom. Hyrkanians believe a man who does not listen to his woman to be unmanly and immature. One of a woman’s roles in Hyrkania is to be a guide for her man in practical matters. Although they still held slightly less rank then men. Women can inherit property and can assume the head of a family when their husbands die. Widowed women are allowed to remarry as they wish and their children are treated as the children of the new husband. Like the men, Hyrkanian women are deadeye archers and accomplished equestrians; women are trained in military techniques just as men are. Although not necessarily members of the Hyrkanian cavalry, women follow the warriors to put the wounded to death and collect arrows for re-use. The strongest and most capable of women fight alongside the men as equal members of the war machine. A woman who fights with the men is given high honour and is in no way treated as non-feminine. Hyrkanian women are also noted for using highly vulgar or offensive language in a playful way, and of course the not so playful way. Hyrkanian women are practical people and are almost cold-blooded when it comes to death, setting an unsettling example of mercilessness. Red Sonja, a Hyrkanian, is not an unlikely character. Hyrkanian women are not pampered and can fight, although they are expected to remain loyal and follow whoever wins them in combat. Women are also valued by the nomads because they make virtually everything in the tribe, including clothing and weapons. They work alongside the men, loading camels or pack horses, driving carts and repairing anything broken or torn. Women also make sure their husbands’ equipment is ready at all times, including fully stocked saddlebags (filled with dried milk curds, qumiz and millet) so the warrior can travel for days without having to take away from his military goal to find food. As a warning to any would-be lotharios in Hyrkania, Hyrkanian women are notably chaste, (Meaning they don't sleep with just anyone, they sleep with whom they deem a fine warrior, leader or overall a respectable person). Although Hyrkanian women are subject to slavery. Look down below for more details). Social Standing Nomadic culture is divided into commoners and nobles, a fluid system of caste. Anyone may be recognised as noble upon displaying skill in organising a tribal government or simple proving himself a capable leader. Thus, Hyrkanian nomads can multi-class into the noble class much easier than other peoples. Taking the Leadership feat is usually enough. A would-be Hyrkanian leader must be able to defend his authority, though. Chiefs and leaders who do not defend their authority are soon dead. Most Hyrkanian tribes permit titles to be inherited but no Hyrkanian nomad ever believes a title guarantees leadership. The Hyrkanian nomads will not follow a leader, regardless of title or heritage, if that leader is not worthy of respect. A Hyrkanian noble must display courage, wisdom, generosity and luck in order to lead. Keep in mind that courage does not equal stupidity. Retreat is not a cowardly manoeuvre for the nomad. A leader is expected to ensure that no member of the tribe starves unless everyone in the tribe is starving. If a leader proves to be an idiot, a coward, a miser or seriously unlucky, then that leader will be exiled, if not killed. Nomads simply do not respect weak or dishonourable leaders. The overall social structure of Hyrkania is a clan structure. Clans are divided into sub-clans, or families. Sometimes, several clans might merge into a small nation – which is what happened with the Turanians. Successful warlords are notorious for gathering clans into small, mobile nations that sweep out of Hyrkanian, conquering all before them. Social mobility is simple in Hyrkanian society and is based on merit. If a Hyrkanian proves worthy, that Hyrkanian climbs the social ladder. No one can gainsay his right to do so if he has earned it. Trade and Economy Hyrkanians are described as shrewd merchants and traders. The Hyrkanian economy is fairly self-sufficient and easily sustainable. Most trade is conducted by the women because the men prefer to focus on hunting or warfare. The economy of Hyrkania is based on livestock breeding, especially camels, cattle, oxen, goats, sheep and horses.The Slave trader is also faily common in Hyrkania, slaves won in battle, or raids are often sold to the Turanians, who then seel them to nations to the the east. Most traders in Hyrkania are actually Khitan. Most Hyrkanians have a practised disdain for money, material comforts and luxuries. Hyrkanian nobles, however, often run up huge debts to the Khitans and have to press their own commoners for more animals and taxes to pay off those debts. Hyrkanians will rarely trade until the traders have walked between a pair of bonfires for purification. Hyrkanian khans exact taxes from any cities under their domination. These taxes vary from khan to khan, from city to city. Nomads are by nature mobile. Trade works best among sedentary people. The sedentary cities managed by the Hyrkanian khans conduct trade and the goods are passed along to the tribes via taxation and the offering of tribute. Those who pay their taxes or offer tribute are spared. Those who do not pay are put to the sword down to the last person. Military To discuss the Hyrkanian military is to discuss the Hyrkanian people. Their culture is a martial one. Their entire lives can be seen as a series of military lessons from their first horse ride to their last. Everything a Hyrkanian learns in regards to survival transfers with almost no adaptation to warfare: hunting, tracking, riding and herding. Any Hyrkanian of either sex who can ride is a soldier for the Hyrkanian military as far as the khans are concerned – there are no Hyrkanian civilians. The Hyrkanians, masters of the double-curved bow, dominate the Vilayet in both military and economic might. With swift warriors mounted on sturdy steppe horses the Hyrkanians defend their trade cities, their trade caravans and their trade routes. In battle, the Hyrkanians do not strive for honour or glory – they strive to win and conquer. Hyrkanians do not fight for vague notions of glory or knightly honour, they fight because they want whatever it is that the enemy has, or they fight to avenge something the enemy has done. Even if this enemy is of their own people. Tribes are more likely to fight each other, then other nations, the winning tribe, take their supplies, and takes their children and women as slaves. Normally killing the men, or exiling them. Hyrkanians may not seem disciplined but to the contrary, they are. Mistakes mean death or worse. If a khan orders a town or caravan spared and a Hyrkanian commander sacks the town or raids the caravan anyway, that commander is forced to serve as a regular soldier in his own former army – and the general never comes back alive from the next combat. The number one tactic used by the Hyrkanians is a simple one: if the Hyrkanians intend to hurt someone, they keep it secret. The Hyrkanians do not bluster and brag and threaten harm. They just do it. They keep their plans secret so their enemies cannot create a viable defence. They do not presage their initial assaults with warnings like civilised nations do. In battle, the Hyrkanians form virtual swarms of violent rage, sending thousands of riders to war. In Shadows in the Moonlight the Hyrkanians sent 15,000 cavalrymen against Conan’s 5,000 kozaki. These deadly riders are trailed by an enormous herd of spare mounts and, in major battles involving scores of thousands, are preceded by thousands of enemy civilians, driven forward by the riders as a vast human shield. Villages faced with the prospect of coming under the sword often surrender, which is fine by the Hyrkanians, who will accept tribute and loot, drawing taxes and additional troops and slaves from the surrendered villages. Those that do not surrender are burned and destroyed without mercy. To say the Hyrkanians are superb with their archery is like saying Cimmerians are hardy folk. Hyrkanians are especially adept at firing their bows from the backs of running horses. Horsemen in training are given an arrow each and required to encircle a herd of game and kill with that one arrow. Hyrkanian cavalry have no equal in battle. A typical Hyrkanian warrior carries his double-curved bow of wood, sinew and horn and up to three quivers of arrows as well as a lance and an array of melee weaponry for close-in work. Hyrkanian generals tend to be audacious and bold. They know their troops can be depended upon to fight without fear. The generals are quite cunning and are not against trying new tactics. The Hyrkanians usually begin battles with archery, filling the air with as many arrows as possible. If the enemy charges, the Hyrkanians light dung fires to create smoke and the archers melt away on their horses to be replaced by Hyrkanian cavalry with long lances and sharp sabres who hide within the smoke to surprise the oncoming knights. Kettledrums are also used to create a fearsome din that echoes above the hoof-beats of the onrushing hordes. (Note: To give an idea of ranks and titles within in the military, look to their real life counterpart, after all one of their most honorary and high ranking title is Khan. Here is a link to a page, list some of the ranks: https://www.warriorsandlegends.com/mongol-warriors/mongol-military-rankings/ Religion The Hyrkanians are not particularly passionate in their religious beliefs. Religion is a minor matter in the lives of the Hyrkanians and is mostly something they take for granted and give little thought. Their uncaring attitude toward religion leaves them fairly tolerant about varied belief systems; generally speaking, Hyrkanians do not bother to indulge themselves in the religious persecution of others. (Note: Although they do believe in a lot of symbols). Goverment The Hyrkanians are ruled by khans, who come either from the ranks of the Ba’atut, a class of Hyrkanians who are given noble title because of their accomplishments, or from the Noyan, the class of Hyrkanians who have risen to command armies because of their accomplishments. The khan commands the Nökud, who comprise the elite warriors of Hyrkania. In most respects, Hyrkanian government is based around typical tribal patterns. Khans are chosen because the gods and spirits have favoured them above all others. Generally, their leaders are chosen through combat. When a khan dies, all who wish to take his place (often the sons and daughters of the deceased khan) come together and fight it out. The winner is the one chosen by the Everlasting Sky as his favourite. Beneath the khans are the kagan, who are military leaders and generals. The kagan are generally autonomous so long as they follow the overall dictates of the khan above them. The kagan often hire administrators who help them run their territories. The khans make decisions through councils and consensus but their ultimate decisions are considered law. A khan’s counsellors include the kagan, various trusted advisors and shamans. Laws among the steppe people are not written down; law comes from the khan or from custom. In subjugated cities, some laws may be written down from previous eras but the ruling Hyrkanians rarely bother to learn or obey them. Minor transgressions bring about the death penalty. Major transgressions cause the transgressor to be exiled, a fate worse than death. Some laws and traditions that are punishable by death include beating animals, especially horses and dogs, throwing waste into water or fire (including urinating into water or fire), adultery, sodomy, sorcery, spying, intentional lying, giving food or clothing to a captive without permission from the captor, not retrieving equipment dropped by a warrior in front of him in a battle, not returning escaped slaves or captives, not offering food to a guest and being unfair or greedy. Intervening in a quarrel as a third party is also penalised by death. Treason is punishable by exile. Slavery When a Khan or Kagan conquers a tribe, raided a foreign caravan, or attacked outside of Hyrkania they would most likely take whomever and whatever they deemed useful, then kill or destroy the rest. Slaves belonged to a tribe, they would be used where they would be seen most useful, obviously outsiders of the tribe are not scene as equals, so slaves would would most likely be treated poorly. They would either be put to work, or beaten until they were complacent. To add on to this, much like Mongolian culture, Women of the Hyrkanian tribes were vulnerable to sexual slavery and concubinage. Any woman taken in a raid becomes the legal property of the victor – and becoming property is the same as becoming a slave. These women captured in fair combat often accept their role as a slave to a certain degree. Hyrkanians have even been known to purchase slaves, as Darfari slaves can be found in Hyrkania. After a time, a slave would most likely be allowed to join the tribe officially or be killed. Ancestry Lemuria sank into the sea during the Cataclysm that ended the Thurian age. The Lemurians escaped to the east coast of the Thurian continent but were enslaved by that people, and endured a millenium of brutal slavery that reduced them to a state of savagery. They eventually rose up and destroyed their masters, and pushed them away to Stygia. The descendants of the Lemurians became the Hyrkanians.